Shihtzu's - how popular are they?

[aprilvaca04]

I am well aware that a Cavachon is a mixed breed. I've done the research and read plenty of info on puppy mills. Not everyone breeding mixed dogs is a puppy mill or a backyard breeder. There are good and ethical people doing it. I've also done plenty of searching on Petfinder and regularly stop at PAWS and our local shelter. So far, no small dogs or if there are any, there is a giant waiting list. Not only that but rescue groups in my area charge a lot for puppies. They also reject you based on having a small child - which i do. You are entitled to your opinion and I'm entitled to mine. I will get the kind of dog I want and not feel guilty about it - either a Cavachon or a Mini-Goldendoodle.

Exactly!!! My mixed breed, designer dog, mutt whatever you may want to call him came from a very loving place. She was so strict that my DH and I often joke that it would have been easier to adopt a child than this dog! Oh yeah...he is the Yorkie Lhasa Apso that I refered to before...good thing I spelled it right this time...YIKES!!!

 

[DaisyD]

I think both posters are right in that mixed breeds can be good or bad. You never know what traits you get. My neighbor went to a pet store and spent a ton of money on a puggle. That dog is the ugliest and most obnoxious dog I've ever seen. She even failed dog training class twice. Another friend has a puggle and it is the smartest cutest dog. They are both puggles but neither look or act anything alike. My own daughter went out a few years ago and proceeded to buy her first dog. She came to visit with her new pet and it is a Pomchi. Pomeranian chihauha mix. My daughter then tells me look mom, I bought a purebred Pomchi. LOL! I tell her there is no such thing as a pure bred mutt. She says but is it purebred. It cost me $600! I just about fell over. Anyway, that dog was adorable and is very sweet too. Not a lot of brains but she makes up for it in cuteness. So I can see the argument you never know what you are going to get but those looking for these specific mixed breeds probably realize that going in and don't mind that. I've never heard of a cavachon but is sounds cute.

 

[FoggyToad]

We have a shi-poo (****zu/poodle) that we adopted from a guy who advertised him on Craig's List. We are the poor pup's third family but he's not moving on as we find him funny, sweet, and smart as necessary to get what he wants. He has hair more like a poodle's than a ****zu's, so it's off to the groomer about once every eight weeks. She leaves the hair on his legs, tail, and muzzle a bit longer than the rest of him. I have to admit that he looks best after the hair grows out a bit. I have to wash his face every day as his eyes water and gunk accumulates under them if I don't. We also have a rottweiler/doberman that we adopted from a local humane society. They are great buddies and love to play together. As for me, I would never buy from a pet store after hearing about their acquisitions from puppy mills. I recommend putting your name on a list at the humane society as someone looking for a small dog and not making up your mind ahead of time and insisting on a certain breed. You might find the perfect pet that you would've never considered otherwise.

 

[tonilea]

We have a mixed breed that we wouldnt trade for the world-he is a yorkie Llapso Apso mix. We love all 5 lbs of him. Shih Tzus and llapso seem very similar to me and they are both adorable!

While Shih Tzus and Lhasas look very similar, it has been my experience that their temperments are very different. I would choose a Shih Tzu any day! My sister has one, and I swear that dog is a saint! He has tolerated more "love" from my neices than any dog should have to.

 

[tonilea]

This is so funny, and I don't mean in any way to denigrate any one, but I have heard Lapso Apso, Lahassa Apsa, not to mention rockweilers, and the one lady who filled out our registration form for her puddle, and one of my favorites, burmeses mountain dog.
I probably should delete this post, but I won't........Let me just mention that when I did the "preview post" thing, I had to go back and correct about 5 spelling errors. Hope I got them all

We had a "terror" come in to the vet clinic where I worked and the little beast was indeed a Terrier Terror.

 

[maddiemouse]

We had a "terror" come in to the vet clinic where I worked and the little beast was indeed a Terrier Terror.

But the "terror" is an actual breed, haven't you ever heard of a Jack Russell Terror?
Before anyone takes offense, let me state that I love Jack Russells, I would never own one, because I don't live on a horse farm, and am too old and fat to keep up with one.
And also, I think mutts are generally fine dogs, my own Maddie, whom I adore, is a mutt, although I didn't pay big bucks for her, as she was found on a city street, lying in the gutter. I just have a problem with people intentionally breeding mutts with cute names to sell solely for profit. Most of todays recognized breeds were created by combining one or more breeds, to come up with a dog that suited a specific purpose the breeder had in mind. Dobermans,Kerry Blue Terriers, Portuguese Water Dogs, my beloved Boxers, just to name a few.
And certainly, anyone who wants to spend a lot of money for a mutt is free to do so, it's your money. If ever I were to actually buy another dog myself, which I won't, having had only rescues over the past twenty years, I would just want to be sure that the parents of the pup were clear of any genetic defect that could possibly be tested for, hip dysplasia, PRF, Addison's Disease,Von Willibrand's and many others. It costs enough to feed and get proper vet care for a healthy dog, much less one who comes up unhealthy due to poor breeding. And you can be sure the puggle, and shih, lhasa, peke or whatever-poo, and yes the cavachon and whatever-doodle breeders out there, however good and kind and loving they may be as people, are not doing genetic screening or testing on the dogs they breed.
After all, that would cut into their profits.

 

[DaisyD]

We have the most laziest jack russell in the world I think. He is nothing like what I read JRTs to be. He is very friendly but would rather lay around then do anything.

 

[donald&daisy]

How did I miss this thread??? I love my Shih Tzu more than I probably should. He is the sweetest, cutest, bestest, most loving dog I have ever known. Did I mention I LOVE him???? Here he is:

And here is the portrait I had done of him and his kitty brother:

 

[aprilvaca04]

How did I miss this thread??? I love my Shih Tzu more than I probably should. He is the sweetest, cutest, bestest, most loving dog I have ever known. Did I mention I LOVE him???? Here he is:

And here is the portrait I had done of him and his kitty brother:

AWWW...so cute

 

[CarolAnnC]

How did I miss this thread??? I love my Shih Tzu more than I probably should. He is the sweetest, cutest, bestest, most loving dog I have ever known. Did I mention I LOVE him???? Here he is:

And here is the portrait I had done of him and his kitty brother:

We have a crossbreed - Jasmine's mother was a full bred Maltese and her father an Imperial Shih Tzu. I did a double take when I saw the picture above, take a look

 

[donald&daisy]

We have a crossbreed - Jasmine's mother was a full bred Maltese and her father an Imperial Shih Tzu. I did a double take when I saw the picture above, take a look

Wow!! What adorable dogs we have!!! I love the silver color!

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

We have the most laziest jack russell in the world I think. He is nothing like what I read JRTs to be. He is very friendly but would rather lay around then do anything.

My "Jack Russell terror" is my cuddly fur baby. She has her moments (loves to bark out the window, pushes her golden retriever brother around, and pretty much is in control of the household) but overall is the most loving, smartest, and most devoted dog I have ever had!

 

[rcraw45425]

We now have two Shih Tzu's, Scruffy, our male is 5, and Sadie, our female is 6 months. We have two of the 7 Dwarfs here, Scruffy is a bit Grumpy and Sadie is definitely Goofy! She is a dynamo of energy, while he has hit the settled mark finally. Different coats also, his has become wireier (is that a word?), while hers is silky. He also weighs around 11 pounds while she's close to 6, more petite without the runny eyes (thankfully because I have to wash Scruff's face daily). Both are loving and devoted to all of us, but Scruffy is definitely Mama's baby, lol. As for grooming, he's easy peasy to bathe, just stands there like a dream. Sadie however is terrible, she tries to climb out and cries constantly. I bathed Scrufy last Sunday night even though he was due to go to the groomers and she cried for him the entire time he was in the sink! The are groomed about every 4 weeks, my hairdresser jokes that they go the same day I go in for my trim

 

[Nana Annie]

I am well aware that a Cavachon is a mixed breed. I've done the research and read plenty of info on puppy mills. Not everyone breeding mixed dogs is a puppy mill or a backyard breeder. There are good and ethical people doing it. I've also done plenty of searching on Petfinder and regularly stop at PAWS and our local shelter. So far, no small dogs or if there are any, there is a giant waiting list. Not only that but rescue groups in my area charge a lot for puppies. They also reject you based on having a small child - which i do. You are entitled to your opinion and I'm entitled to mine. I will get the kind of dog I want and not feel guilty about it - either a Cavachon or a Mini-Goldendoodle.

That is where you are wrong. No ethical breeder will breed a mutt for money. Breeding dogs is to make improvements to something and should NEVER EVER be done for profit.

In fact, ethical breeders usually lose money on their litters because they do all the expensive health screenings on both the parents that is so necessary to make sure that they are not breeding two dogs together that might perpetuate a health or genetic problem. Cavaliers have heart problems in their breed. No ethical breeder would breed a cavalier without doing many expensive tests to make sure the breeding dog is free of heart defects.

Mutt breeders do not do the health screening necessary to make sure that they are not perpetuating a problem.

That said, you can purchase any dog you want. Just make sure you check that your "breeder" can list the health problems for at least 5 generations back of each parent. Make sure you research what problems are inherent in both the cavalier and the bichon. Then make the breeder show you that the parents have been tested clear of these problems. Only then can you say that your mutt breeder is responsible and not a puppy mill or backyard breeder. My guess is that you are going to have to search high and low for a breeder that does health testing when breeding for mutts, because they are more concerned about profit of the litter than the actual puppies they are creating.

But the one thing you can never predict is what your designer mutt is going to look like. As mentioned before, it is not a breed, so will not breed true to any kind of standard.

When you breed two beagles together, you get a litter of puppies that are beagles.

When you breed mutts, such as the cavachon, there is no limit to what you can get.

You can get any combination of traits of either parent. So there is absolutely no way somebody can show you pictures of their dog and you can expect your puppy to look even remotely like it. Your dog can have the bichon coat or the cav coat. It can even have a combination, the frizzy on one part of the body with other areas straight. It can have a head like a bichon or a head like a cavalier or some combination of the two. It can have the heavy set body of the bichon with the cav legs or vice versa.

Don't be fooled - you cannot even remotely predict how a mutt will turn out, just because it is a mutt.

Good luck on your puppy search.

 

[LK03]

While Shih Tzus and Lhasas look very similar, it has been my experience that their temperments are very different. I would choose a Shih Tzu any day! My sister has one, and I swear that dog is a saint! He has tolerated more "love" from my neices than any dog should have to.

You're not kidding about the different temperaments. While my Lhasa, Max looks like a Shih he certainly does not behave like one! He stays true to his guard dog personality at all times! Very alert, attentive and wary of all strangers and dogs he encounters.

He is real cute though, if I may say so, heh:

little teddy bear!